LAS VEGAS, Sept. 26 – In a statement released today, Rael, spiritual leader of the International Raelian Movement, had harsh words about Stephen Hawking after the famous mathematician-cosmologist expressed grave concerns about responding to 'alien' contact.

"One day we might receive a signal from a planet like this [Gliese 832c], but we should be wary of answering back,” Hawking warned listeners during his online show, “Stephen Hawking’s Favorite Places.” He suggested that a meeting between our civilization and an extraterrestrial might resembled the one between Christopher Columbus meeting Native Americans. “That didn't turn out so well,” he said.

“Hawking’s statement is typical of the European imperialist mentality,” Rael said in today’s statement. “They think everyone in the universe behaves like the white, racist Europeans who want to conquer the world.”

In May 2013, Rael awarded Hawking the title “Honorary Guide of Humanity” for withdrawing from an Israeli president’s conference. Hawking withdrew to support an academic boycott against Israel that was organized to protest the Israeli occupation of Palestine.

But Rael has often criticized Hawking’s position that aliens pose a threat to humanity, a view shared by many other scientists.

“For 42 years, Rael has carried and delivered a very clear message (www.rael.org) from an extraterrestrial civilization that claims to have created all forms of life on Earth,” said Brigitte Boisselier, PhD, spokesperson of the Raelian Movement. “He has also explained the simple principle that applies to any contact situation: All civilizations able to travel in space and reach other habitable planets have reached a level of development that causes them to self-destruct if they are not peaceful and respectful of life.”

For that reason, Boisselier said, any contacts we receive will be from civilizations that have overcome all violent and dominating instincts.

“Respect, love and peace are their main values, and they have mastered them,” she said. “Those values are perfectly illustrated in the contacts Rael had with the civilization called the Elohim, which is described in the Bible and many other ancient texts about the origin of life.”

“When reading statements like Hawking’s that project Columbus’s behavior onto extraterrestrials, it’s easy to understand why the Elohim are asking to be welcomed in an Embassy,” Rael said.

To learn more about the Embassy for the Elohim, visit elohimembassy.org.